Padder, mangle, or squeeze rolls for improved extraction and impregnation of textile fibers, yarns, and fabrics



y 3, 1952 J. F. KEATING ETAL 596,154

' PADDER, MANGLE, OR SQUEEZE ROLLS FOR IMPROVE ND I EXTRACTION A MPREGNATION OF TEXTILE FIBERS, Y S, AND FA ICS Filed 9, 19

nown$ouw J.F.K NG E-J-K ING ATTORNEYS Patented May 13, 1952 PADDER, MANGLE, OR SQUEEZE ROLLS EQR IMPROVED EXTRACTION AND IMPREGNA- TION QF TEXTILE FIBERS, YARNS, AND

FABRICS .iohn F. Heating, Zacapu, Michoacan, Mexico, and 'Esm'ond J. Keating, New r1eans, La., assignors to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of Agriculture Appiication August 9, 1949, Serial -No.109,'38

(Cl. bite-244,)

(Granted under the act ofMarch "3, 1883, as amcnd edApril 30, 1928; 370 O. G. 757) 2 Claims.

This application is made under the act of March 3, 1883, as amended by the act of April 30, 1928, and the invention herein described and claimed if patented in any country, may be manufactured and used by or for the Government of the United Statesof America throughout the world for governmental purposes without the payment to us of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to squeeze rolls in textile padders and mangles. The invention also relates to the use of said improved rolls in padders and mangles for the purpose of impreghatin fibers, yarns and fabrics with liquids, solutions, or suspensions in order to bring about a substantially greater degree of penetration of the fibers, yarns and fabrics.

Textile .padders and mangles known to textile processing utilize two or more squeeze rolls betweenwhich fibers, yarns, or fabrics are passed for the purpose of extracting liquids therefrom, and for theadditional purpose of impregnating the fibers, yarns, 0r fabrics with liquids, sol-ut ionsjor suspensions through which the fibers, yarns or fabrics have been passed previously. Two ormore metal, rubber, rubber-like, or rubber covered rolls are supported in a suitable framework in such a manner that an external force can be applied to the rolls to squeeze them together, while at the same time the rolls are being driven-so as to revolve in contact with each other.

' An'object of this invention is an improvement in the construction of rolls for use in textile padders and mangles to increase the degree of penetration by liquid and to obtain a higher degree of liquid extraction or removal from the textile.

' The rolls comprise a hard core or" metal or other hard material covered with a thin layer of soft rubber or rubber-like material. The thinness of this rubber layer is a critical feature of the invention. When an external force is applied so as to squeeze these rolls together, the thin cover can deflect orfiatten only slightly, thereby providing-a small area of contact between the rolls upon which area the applied force is concentrated. At the same time, the high pressure area thuscfeated operates together 'with the soft covering material in a manner to cause the soft covering materialto deform into, 'orbe squeezed into, the interstices in the weave offabrics, and around the fibers and yarns. The space into i which the soft covering material is forced in -the'appa-ratus described is in prior practice 0c- ;-cu pi edbyliquid, solution or suspension. This L invention; then, produces two results heretofore 2 unknown to the textile art in the use of padders and mangles. One, a high degree of liquid extraction is obtained. Soaking-Wet fibers, yarns, or fabrics passed between the rolls of this invention emerge bearing considerably less liquid-than when passed between rolls heretofore known to the textile art. Two, when fibers, yarns, orfab- 'rics are dipped into a solution or suspensionfor the purpose of impregnating the fibers, yarns, or fabrics with the dissolved or suspendedmaterial, then passed between the rolls of this invention, a substantially greater degree of penetration into and amon the fibers and yarns is brought about than has been known in the'prior art.

Prior to this invention, rolls used in padd'ers and 'mangles have been constructed of metal, or of metal with a covering of rubber so thick as to be commonly referred to as solid rubber rolls, said covering being of various densities from hard to softjand being one-half inch or greater, normally much greater, in thickness. Such rolls have been used in various combinations, for example, one metal and one hard rubber covered, or one metal and one soft rubber covered, or one soft rubber and one hard covered. The deficiencies of these conventional rolls vary with the combinations used. For example, if one metal roll is used together with one hard rubber roll, little flattening occurs at'the nip, or area of contact, the amount of flattening depending upon the degree of hardness of the rubber roll, consequently the applied force is concentrated in a small area, butneither the metal nor the hard rubber can deform into the weave of a fabric, nor around fibers and. yarns. Liquids in these spaces, in the weave of a fabric, and around fibers and yarns are carried through the nip of the rolls and the degree of extraction does not nearly approach that obtained in our invention. With this combination of prior rolls, solutions are not forced into the yarns or fibers as they are with our invention. The solutions or suspensions, simply run into the spaces of the weave. or alongside theyarns or fibers, and so pass through the nip of the'rolls. As another example, if twofsoft rdbbjerrolls are used together, or if a soft rubber rollfis used with a roll of any degree of hardness, thesoft rubber may be squeezed into the spaces inthe weave of fabrics, and around fibers and yarnspbut considerable flattening of the soft rubber roll occurs. The pressure area at the nip increasesin size to an e q fmous degree with only-asmallamount of flattening, and as a result thelforce. perunit area exerted on the fibers, yarns, or fabrics is considerably lower for a given applied force than is the case in which two hard rolls are used. Because of the much lower force per unit area, or pressure, the degree of extraction of liquids is low, and the penetration obtained is not good.

The drawings illustrate one embodiment of the invention.

Figure l is a view of a conventional two-roll padder.

Figure 2 is an enlarged View of the rolls, showing the small width of the area of contact.

Figure 3 is a magnified view showing the action of the thin rubber layers, which substantially envelope the individual fibers of the fabric.

The invention as illustrated in the drawings consists of rolls I and 2 of metal or other hard substance, used in textile padders and mangles, having appropriate shafts 3 and 4 and the usual journals and shoulders. It differs from the conventional rolls in that each roll has a thin covering of soft rubber or rubber-like material 6 and 1, said coveringbeing one-quarter of an inch or less in thickness as measured along the diameter of the roll, and having a density of 100 or greater as measured with a Pusey and Jones plastometer (with the 0.125-inch ball) or less than 58 as measured with the Shore durometer. Weights 8 and 9 acting through levers it and il bear down upon sliding journals l2 and I3. These sliding journals carry shaft 3 in a suitable bearing. The fabric M is fed into the liquid in tank in the usual manner, and then between the rolls I and 2.

The invention includes the construction of rolls for a textile padder and mangle, the use of one or more of these rolls in padders and mangles for the purpose of obtaining greater extraction, or better penetration, of liquids from or into fibers, fabrics, and yarns, and the process of using these rolls, whereby high liquid extraction or penetration from or into fibers, yarns, or fabrics is obtained.

Example 1 A two roll padder was constructed with appropriate gearing so that both rolls were driven at the same speed. Two steel rolls, each having a diameter of 2.5 inches, were each covered with a layer of rubber having a thickness of -inch as measured along the diameter of the roll. The rubber had a density of as measured with the Shore durometer, and was suitably bonded to the steel roll. The padder was equipped with a mechanism for applying measured force so as to squeeze the rolls together.

Two pieces of a 48 x 44, 5.6 oz./sq. yd., bleached and mercerized cotton sheeting were soaked in water for five minutes. Piece A was run dripping wet between the rolls of a conventional padder having one roll of steel, and one roll of medium density rubber. Piece B was run, also dripping wet, through the rolls described in this invention. The force applied so as to squeeze the rolls together was 100 pounds per linear inch as measured along the face of the rolls. The degree of water extraction was measured in each case in the'conventional manner, and expressed as percent take-up Piece A:

weight of water retained by fabric dry weight of the fabric sample Piece B:

100=75% take-up Piece B emerged from the padder much drier than Piece A.

Example 2 The sam procedure was followed as in Example 1, except that a 64 x 60, 2.5 oz./sq. yd., bleached and mercerized cotton print cloth was used.

Results were as follows:

Water take-up, Piece A== Water take-up, Piece B=44 Example 3 The same procedure was followed as in Example 1, except that a scoured and bleached 8 oz. army duck was used. The results were as follows:

Water take-up, Piece A=64% Water take-up, Piece B==47 Example 4 The same procedure was followed as in Example 1, except that the force applied to squeeze the rolls together was 200 pounds per linear inch, 2. force in the order of magnitude of that commonly used in textile practice.

Results were as follows:

Water take-up, Piece A=70% Water take-up, Piece B=35 Piece B had been extracted to such a high degree that it was almost dry to the touch.

Example 5 A piece of 48 x 44, 5.6 oz./sq. yd., bleached cotton sheeting was run through a 10% solution of lead acetate containing 1% of acetic acid and led directly through the nip of a conventional padder. The lead acetate impregnated fabric was then run through a 2% solution of sodium chromate containing 0.5% of acetic acid and again passed through the nip of the same padder. The same operation, using another piece of the same fabric, was performed except that the rolls described in this invention were used in the padder, and the solutions used were of twice the concentration since only half as much solution was taken up by the fabric in this case. Equal force was applied to squeeze the rolls together in each case. The two fabric samples were dried, then examined under the microscope. Examination of the fabric impregnated in the conventional manner disclosed that only the outer fibers, that is, those fibers on the surface of the fabric were stained with the yellow lead chromate. Examination of the fabric impregnated with the use of the rolls described in this invention disclosed that the yellow lead chromate appeared all through the yarns of the fabric. No unstained fibers were observed.

The invention is intended primarily for use in textile treating processes in which a single layer of fiat, open width fabric, sheet of yarn, or mat of fibers is being extracted or impregnated.

The layers 6 and 1 range in thickness from 1% of an inch to and including A of an inch. The hardness of the rubber rangesfrom to 200 as measured with a Pusey and Jones plastometer inch ball) or 36 to 58 as measure with a Shore durometer A. 7

Having thus described our invention, we claim:

1. In a textile padder having a tank for impregnating liquid and at least two rolls between which fabric, yarn, or fiber is passed after being impregnated in the liquid, the improvement comprising employing, as said rolls, two hard-core rolls, each having a coating of thin soft rubber, the thickness of which ranges from of an inch to of an inch, and the hardness of which ranges from 100 to 200 as measured with a Pusey and Jones plastometer inch ball), the diameter of each of the hard cores being about two and one half inches.

2. In a textile padder having a tank fer impregnating liquid and at least two rolls between which fabric, yarn, or fiber is passed after being impregnated in the liquid, the improvement comprising employing, as said rolls, at least two hard-core rolls, each having a coating or" thin soft rubber, the thickness of which ranges from fi of an inch to of an inch, and the hardness JOHN F. KEATING. ESMOND J. KEATING.

CE S CITED The following references are of record in the the of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,055,40 Kremer Mar. 11, 1913 1,702,140 Topham Feb. 12, 1929 

